Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
BOX 8.1
Conservation-Based Collaboration
A recently acquired 175-acre addition to the Arcata Community Forest brought to-
gether a diverse group of funders, all with a desire to see the parcel remain intact as
a working forest and with the goal to manage for late-successional habitat, like the
core Arcata Community Forest.
The acquisition was made possible by assistance from the Trust for Public Land
and the funding support of the federal Forest Legacy Program, State Wildlife Con-
servation Board, California Transportation Commission, California Coastal Con-
servancy, and Save the Redwoods League. The City was able to leverage $100,000
in donations from local residents with $40,000 in City funds to obtain the additional
grants necessary for the $2,750,000 transaction.
ber operations with the goal of creating “old-growth-like” stands over a long period of
time. Members of the committee provide an important access point for public in-
volvement. The members are well known and respected in the community, which has
helped the program weather political and economic shifts. Fortunately, in Arcata
there is a wealth of local professional expertise to draw upon to fill committee vacan-
cies when they do occur.
There is an opportunity to increase citizen participation through interactions with
the Forest Management Committee. Recently, the committee has invited the public
to attend preharvest field trips to discuss the ecological goals of a particular timber har-
vest project. They have also begun to invite the public on postharvest evaluations and
provide attendees with scorecards to rate particular attributes of a harvest operation,
including damage to residual trees, soil compaction, stump height, riparian and wet-
land protection and implementation measures, and ground disturbance variables. We
need to continue to involve youth in the forestry program and provide opportunities
for them to learn how well-managed forests provide clean water, protect biodiversity,
and mitigate climate change.
Continued certification by the Forest Stewardship Council, annual audits, and
transparent third-party monitoring of the forestry operations provide additional oppor-
tunities for individuals to be involved in their community forest. Third-party certifica-
tion has given the public and the city council a level of confidence that the forest
resources are being managed in accordance with ecological principles. Recent mod-
eling of the city's forest resource base now includes carbon accounting, which is con-
sistent with the city's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan. There is an opportunity for
Arcata to provide a regional demonstration site to show the economic and environ-
mental benefits of managing redwood forests to increase terrestrial carbon storage.
Economic Challenges and Opportunities
Currently, the community forest generates about $500,000 of revenue per year from
commercial timber harvesting, which is more than is needed to be self-supporting. No
